''Chiloglanis fortuitus'' is a species of

catfish Catfish (or catfishes; order (biology), order Siluriformes or Nematognathi) are a diverse group of ray-finned fish. Catfish are common name, named for their prominent barbel (anatomy), barbels, which resemble a cat's whiskers, though not ...

native to

West Africa West Africa, also known as Western Africa, is the westernmost region of Africa. The United Nations geoscheme for Africa#Western Africa, United Nations defines Western Africa as the 16 countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Gha ...

, specifically rivers in

Liberia Liberia, officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country on the West African coast. It is bordered by Sierra Leone to Liberia–Sierra Leone border, its northwest, Guinea to Guinea–Liberia border, its north, Ivory Coast to Ivory Coast–Lib ...

. It was first described in 2023, alongside another species of ''Chiloglanis'', ''

Chiloglanis frodobagginsi ''Chiloglanis frodobagginsi'' is a species of catfish native to West Africa, in particular the upper Niger River. First described in 2023, it was initially mistaken for its sister species, '' Chiloglanis micropogon''. Etymology ''Chiloglanis ...

''.

Description

''Chiloglanis fortuitus'' has a maximum

standard length Fish measurement is the measuring of individual fish and various parts of fish anatomy, their anatomies, for data used in many areas of ichthyology, including Taxonomy (biology), taxonomy and fishery biology. Overall length Standard length (SL) is ...

of 35.0 mm, although this measurement was based on a single male specimen. Its oral disc is moderate in size, with the width being equal to the length in measurement. ''C. fortuitus'' differs from all other species in ''Chiloglanis'' by possessing 18 mandibular teeth. The oral disc and

barbels In fish anatomy and turtle anatomy, a barbel is a slender, whisker like sensory organ near the mouth (sometimes called whiskers or tendrils). Fish that have barbels include the catfish, the carp, the goatfish, the hagfish, the sturgeon, the z ...

are cream-colored, while the body is dark brown with patches of light-brown marks.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q121221867 Fish described in 2023 fortuitus Freshwater fish of Africa